Closure means for sealing vacuumized containers



30, 1941. J, H, Q'NEIL 2,268,297

CLOSURE MEANS FOR SEALING VACUUMIZED CONTAINERS Filed June 6, 1940flrromvsys Patented Dec. 30, 1941 CLOSURE MEANS FOR SEALING VACUUM- IZEDCONTAINERS James H. ONeil, Syracuse, N. Y., assignor to Continental CanCompany, Inc., New York, N. Y., a

corporation of New York Application June s, 1940, Serial No. 339,111

3 Claims.

The invention relates to new and useful improvements in a sheet metalcontainer which is particularly adapted for packaging dry products invacuum. t

An object of the invention is to provide a sheet I metal containerhaving an opening in the closure end whereby a vacuum may be drawn onthe container after it is filled and closed, with a closure member forsaid opening which is loosely attached to the end as a unit so as topermit a vacuum to be drawn on the container through the opening, andwhich may be solder-bonded to the end for sealing the container whilesaid container is under vacuum.

A further object of the invention is to provide a closure member for theopening in the container end of the above type, wherein said closuremember is provided with a shank extending through said opening, whichshank is spread and clinched to the end for loosely holding the closuremember associated with the end as 'a unit.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a closure memberof the above type which has a depending peripheral portion coated withsolder so that when heat is applied to said perlpheral portion, theclosure member will be solder-bonded to the container end at a distanceaway from the opening so as to prevent molten solder from passingthrough the opening into the container.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a containerclosure means of the above type wherein the metal in the end surroundingsaid opening is bent upwardly so as to provide a dam for preventing themolten solder from passing through the opening into the container whenthe closure member is solder-bonded to the end.

These and other objects will in part be obvious and will in part behereinafter more fully disclosed.

In the drawing which shOWs by way of illustration one embodiment of theinvention- Figure 1 is a sectional view through the upper portion of acontainer which has been sealed by my improved closure means after avacuum has been drawn thereon;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view through a portion of the containerend and the closure cap before the shank of the cap has been expanded tosecure the same loosely to the container end;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Figure 2, but showing the shank portion ofthe closure cap expanded into a position which holds the closure capassociated with the end as a unit, the closure member being shown asraised by the vacuum pull during the vacuumizing of the container;

Fig. 4 i a view similar to Figure 3, but showing the closure member assolderbonded in sealed engagement with the container end;

Fig. 5 is a top plan view of the closure member before it is attached tothe container end, and

Fig. 6 is a bottom view similar to Figure 5, but showing the expandingof the hollow shank for clinching the same to the container end.

The invention as shown, is applied to a sheet metal container whichincludes a body portion l to which the bottom end, not shown, is securedby the ordinary double seam. After the container is filled, it is thenclosed by double-seaming an end 2 with the closure cap loosely attachedthereto, to the container. This closure end 2 has a depressed portion 3,preferably at the center thereof. The depressed portion 3 is surroundedby a substantially vertical wall 4. At the center of the depressedportion is an opening 5, and the metal surrounding the opening is turnedupwardly as indicated at 6. This may be produced at the time of punchingthe opening. Associated with the end is a closure member 1 which is inthe form 0! a cap which is of much larger diameter than the opening andpreferably of substantially the same diameter as the depression in theend, so that said cap will loosely slip into the depression.' The caphas a solid or imperforate head, and a hollow shank 8 which i split asindicated at 8, 9. This hollow shank is of considerably less diameterthan the opening 5. A 010- sure member is attached to the end as a unitby extending the shank through the opening as shown in Figure 2, afterwhich the shank is spread to the position shownin Figure 3.- Theout-turned flange l0 formed by the spreading of the shank provides aholding member which is of larger diameter than the opening through theend. This spreading of the shank does not force the same tightly againstthe end so that the closure member has a limited endwise movement, butremains associated with the end as a unit.

The closure member on its outer face is preferably dome-shaped and atits peripheral edge has a depending portion ll. There is also adepending annular rib I2 disposed inwardly from the peripheral portionII, but outwardly from the raised portion 6 surrounding the opening 5.The closure member 1 is made up in the shape of a rivet before it isattached to the end 2 and is preferably coated inside and out with tin.While a coating of tin is specifically mentioned, any othernon-corrosive metal which will alloy with solder might be used as acoating, or the rivet could be formed as a solid unit of such an alloy.The member 1 is finally coated with solder in the region of itsperipheral edge as indicated at 13, in the drawings, and looselyattached to the end 2.

The container is filled with the product after which the end 2 with theclosure member I loosely attached thereto is double-seamed thereto. Thecontainer by any suitable means is then placed under vacuum. Preferablythe container is placed in a bell or a vacuum chamber and the air andgases drawn from the container through the opening 5. The closure memberis at this time loosely attached to the end and will raise to theposition shown in Figure 3. The air and gases will pass out through theslots 9, 9 in the shank and from beneath the head of the closure member.When the vacuum on the container reaches the same degree as the vacuumon the chamber, then the closure member will descend into engagementwith the container end. Disposed in the vacuum chamber is a solderingiron which is preferably so shaped as to contact with the closure memberin the region of the peripheral portion only. The soldering iron ispressed against the closure member, and thus heat is ap plied to thesolder-coated region of the periphery of the closure member, whichsolder will be melted and caused to flow down into the depression in theend, as shown in Figure 4, and thus the closure member is solder-bondedto the end and the opening sealed.

The closure member is of considerably larger diameter than the opening,and therefore, the

solder bond which is located at the peripheral portion of the closuremember is some distance from the opening and is not likely to flow toany great extent toward the opening. The annular rib I2 will serve torestrict the flow of the molten solder toward the opening, and thesolder should pass this annular rib, then the raised portion 6 willserveas a positive dam for preventing any solder passing into thecontainer.

My improved closure means for a container which is sealed in vacuum isparticularly adapted for a dry product or any product which becomesstaple under the action of vacuum before applying the hot soldering ironto seal the container. While solder is described as applied to theperipheral edge portion of the cap, it will be understood that thesolder may be otherwise applied to the cap or the end, the essentialfeature being that the solder shall be present for the bonding of thecap to the container end for sealing the same, after the vacuum has beendrawn on the container, and so applied as not to pass into the containerduring the solder bonding of the cap. While a solder bond is describedas means for sealing the cap, it will be understood that the cap ,may bewelded to the end for sealing the container.

It is obvious that many changes may be made in the details ofconstruction without departing from the spirit of the invention as setforth in the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is:

1. A sheet metal container having ends seamed thereto, one of said endshaving an opening therethrough permitting a vacuum to be drawn on thecontainer after it is filled and the closing end attached thereto, ametal closure cap overlying said opening, said cap having means wherebyit is initially loosely attached to the end, the head of said cap beingimperforate and larger than the opening whereby said cap may besolder-bonded at the peripheral portion thereof to said end while thecontainer is under vacuum for sealing the same, said closure cap havinga depending peripheral portion and an annular rib on its under facespaced from said peripheral portion and surrounding said opening, saidclosure cap being coated with a non-corrosive metal such as tin andhaving the peripheral edge thereof coated with solder'so that when asolder iron is applied to the peripheral portion thereof, the closurecap will be solder-bonded to the can end and the molten solder will berestrained by said rib so as to prevent the solder from flowing throughthe opening into the container.

2. A sheet metal container having ends seamed thereto, one of said endshaving an opening therethrough permitting a vacuum to be drawn on thecontainer after it is filled and the closing end attached thereto, ametal closure cap overlying said opening, said cap having means wherebyit is initially loosely attached to the end, the head of said cap beingimperiprate and larger than the opening whereby said cap may besolc'ienoonded at the peripheral portion thereof to said end while thecontainer is under vacuum for sealing the same, said container endhaving a depression surrounding said opening with the metal at the edgeof the opening turned upward, and

on and an annular rib on the under face disposed between said peripheralportion and. 1e upturned edge portion at the opening, said closure capbeing coated with a non-corrosive metal such as tin and having theperipheral edge thereof coated with solder whereby when a soldering ironis applied to the peripheral portion, said cap will be solder-bonded tothe end.

A sheet metal container having ends seamed thereto, one of said endshaving an opening therethrough permitting a vacuum to be drawn oncontainer after it is filled and the closing end attached thereto, ametal closure cap overlying said opening, said cap having a hollow shankextending loosely through said opening, said hollow shank being splitand the ends thereof turned outward to form a holding flange of largerdiameter than the opening, which flange is initially out of contact withthe end so as to permit said closure cap to move away from the end whena vacuum is drawn on said container, said end having a depressionsurrounding said opening with the edge portion of the metal at theopening turned upward, said closure cap having 9. depending peripheralportion and an annular rib on its under face disposed between saidperipheral portion and the upturned edge at the opening, said closurecap being coated with a non-corrosive metal such as tin and having theperipheral edge thereof coated with solder whereby when a soldering ironis applied to said peripheral portion, the cap will be solder-bonded tothe end, said annular rib-and upturned edge portion at the openingpreventing any solder from flowing through the opening into thecontainer.

JAMES H. O'NEIL.

Mani

